The Department of Transportation and Infrastructure has temporarily closed the Eighth Avenue viaduct to cars. The closure spans about a half-mile between Tejon and Mariposa streets and will end by Nov. 26, the Wednesday before Thanksgiving.
Crews will remove temporary metal plates on the east and west ends of the long bridge. The plates have been there since July and have come with a 10 mph speed limit. The viaduct will return to its original 30 mph speed limit when it reopens next week.
The plates were necessary while the city patched the bridge's expansion joints. The bridge is also scheduled for a much bigger revamp in the coming years, with $89 million in funding from the recent Vibrant Denver bond package.
Drivers going east will be rerouted north on Wyandot Street to West 13th Avenue, then east to Mariposa Street and south back to Eighth Avenue, according to DOTI. Drivers on Interstate 25 should use the Sixth Avenue or Colfax Avenue alternate routes.
The viaduct’s pedestrian and bike paths are still open.
The viaduct will eventually be rebuilt through the Vibrant Denver project. The bond money will pay to lower part of the road to street level as it crosses Burnham Yard, the old rail yard where the Denver Broncos are planning a new stadium. Early plans show the Broncos are planning on major city-funded changes to Eighth Avenue.
The Eighth Avenue project was the largest item in the bond proposal, while another $50 million is going toward revamping Sixth Avenue, which also is near Burnham Yard.
